PACK petition plan to force funds debate (From Keighley News)

PACK petition plan to force funds debate

8:00am Tuesday 12th March 2013 in Keighley

Parents Advice Centre Keighley has refused to give up hope despite being rejected for funding in this year’s Bradford Council budget.

Bosses hope to force a debate by the full council regarding the future of the threatened advice and training centre in Russell Street.

The local authority will have no choice but to discuss the centre – known as PACK – if it can attract at least 1,500 signatures for a petition.

PACK manager John Toothill this week revealed about 1,100 signatures had been collected during the past five weeks.

He said: “I’m hoping to push that up by the end of this week. We’ve collected signatures in the town centre shops, from the college and through Rotary.”

PACK is facing a crisis because its three-year running costs grant from Bradford Council runs out this month, and further funding was refused because the council had to cope with millions of pounds of budget cuts. PACK had pinned its hopes on a last-minute U-turn in the council budget, finalised last Thursday, but no money was forthcoming.

Mr Toothill added: “We’re running roughly to the end of March or early April. We are dependent on what we can get.

“Small-scale fundraising events are not the real answer at this stage. We need major funding.”